fluid dynamics

Geodynamo: Building a Test Planet

Posted Thu, 01/15/2009 - 19:16 by Nick Winterhalter
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(Click for video)

Researchers at the University of Maryland have constructed a 30-ton sphere that spins at more than 90 mph to generate magnetic fields. The 10-ft.-dia. sphere is filled with 13.5 tons of liquid sodium to mimic the Earth’s liquid-iron center core. A 3.3-ft.- dia. stainless-steel sphere inside the larger one counterrotates to approximate the motion of the planet’s solid iron inner core. The action of Earth’s inner liquid produces a magnetic field that makes compasses work, deflects harmful cosmic rays and protects the planet from solar wind. The field reverses every couple of hundred thousand years. By using a model instead of a computer simulation, scientists hope to determine how these reversals occur and predict the next one.

Via Popular Mechanics

Ferrofluid Sculpture and Kinetic Art

Posted Wed, 09/03/2008 - 18:43 by Nick Winterhalter

Here's a fantastic example of kinetic art using ferrofluid, a magnetic liquid.
Also see Protrude, Flow (2001) by Sachiko Kodama and Minako Takeno

Morpho Towers — Two Standing Spirals (2007) by Sachiko Kodama

The body of the tower was made by a new technique called “ferrofluid sculpture” that enables artists to create dynamic sculptures with fluid materials. This technique uses one electromagnet, and its iron core is extended and sculpted.